


blank space

by inkin_brushes



Series: Immortals (Vamp AU) [36]
Category: VIXX
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-24
Updated: 2015-05-24
Packaged: 2018-05-27 11:28:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,359
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6282802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inkin_brushes/pseuds/inkin_brushes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The beginning of the end.</p>
            </blockquote>





	blank space

It was odd, how Hakyeon had adjusted to things that previously had been so hard to swallow.

Jaehwan’s maroon couch was beginning to seem not quite so garish to him. It was truly a sign things were changing.

Hakyeon unscrewed the cap on his thermos, taking a sip of blood, cooled down now to something resembling the average human body temperature. He prefered it this way, rather than chilled, even if drinking it warm meant he had to heat it up. Microwaving blood was just so grotesquely macabre, but he’d deal with it.

Wonshik was making a rather judgemental face at him and Hakyeon really didn’t appreciate it. “I can’t believe you’re actually drinking blood out of a thermos,” Wonshik said.

Hakyeon looked pointedly at the bag of blood in Wonshik’s hand. “You’re drinking it out of a bag. With a straw.” 

Hongbin, who was sitting next to Wonshik on the couch, their thighs brushing, said, “He does have a point.”

“Yeah, but this is like— there’s no prep, you know? It’s just thoughtless sustenance, pull it out of the fridge, drink it, toss it out. We don’t pour it into a glass with ice cubes and a little umbrella,” Wonshik said.

“Jaehwan has done that,” Taekwoon said flatly, and Hakyeon couldn’t tell if he was kidding or not. He was leaning against the plush armchair Hakyeon was curled up on.

Wonshik sighed heavily, like he was martyred, and Hongbin giggled. “Yeah, well. At least when I’m drinking out of the bags, I don’t have dishes to do afterwards.”

“Heathen,” Hakyeon said, smiling slightly as he took another sip from his thermos. Afterwards he held the thermos out in offering to Taekwoon, who shook his head minutely.

Hongbin watched the exchange with a small smile playing on his lips. “It’s only been a couple of months, but you’ve changed so much,” he said softly. “Have you been— I mean, are you lucid pretty consistently now?”

“Yeah, I’ve stabilized pretty well,” Hakyeon said, somewhat gratefully. Taekwoon made sure Hakyeon fed regularly, so he hadn’t lost himself in the bloodlust again, not after those first few days. And hearing heartbeats, breathing— it was getting easier. 

“Must be nice,” Hongbin said, almost wistful. Hakyeon didn’t know what to say, didn’t know what he could say. He felt a little guilty, even though he knew it wasn’t his fault, that he could be free of the bloodlust already, while Hongbin every night played russian roulette. 

Now that Hakyeon had seen Hongbin regressed, he felt sadder about it, somehow.

“You’ll get there,” Wonshik said. Hongbin smiled at him, patting his thigh comfortingly, like Wonshik was the one who needed reassuring.

This train of conversation reminded Hakyeon of something he’d been meaning to bring up. “When you broke Hongbin out, Wonshik,” Hakyeon said, and both Wonshik and Hongbin looked at him simultaneously, in somewhat creepy sync, “you did it four weeks after you turned, right?”

Wonshik shook his head, a little guiltily. “Three,” he said. “I was missing for four weeks, but I was only a vampire for three of those. Why?”

Hakyeon opened his mouth, and then shut it, because there was sound and movement, from the hall.

Jaehwan came out of the hallway, looking immaculate, every hair in place, button down shirt tucked into his slacks just _so_. He didn’t look at them, kept his head held high as he stalked through the room, towards the kitchen. It was a show; if he really didn’t want them to pay attention to him, he’d have flit right through. No, he was making his displeasure known, like a five year old. 

Hakyeon continued with the conversation they’d been having, viciously pleased that Jaehwan was going to hear it. “I’ve been thinking that it’s been two months since I turned, and I could probably safely visit Sanghyuk, at this point.”

Jaehwan stopped, in the archway to the kitchen. He was facing away from them, so Hakyeon couldn’t see his face, but he watched as Jaehwan’s hands clenched into fists. After a moment, Jaehwan resumed walking, disappearing into the kitchen without a word.

“I mean,” Hakyeon said, smoothly like none of them were exceedingly attuned to Jaehwan’s reaction, “you were able to get Hongbin out without attacking Sanghyuk at three weeks, so I think I’ll be able to manage it at eight, you know?”

There was a bang, from the kitchen, like a cabinet had just been slammed. Taekwoon sighed, very softly. 

“I really shouldn’t have gone so soon,” Wonshik murmured, and there was another bang from the kitchen. “I wasn’t safe, at that point, but— yeah, I think you should be good.”

“Mm,” Hongbin hummed, sipping on his blood. He was eyeing the archway into the kitchen, seemingly amused. 

“And I will be there, of course,” Taekwoon added quietly. If that was supposed to appease Jaehwan, it did not work, since there was yet another bang from the kitchen. 

“Everything alright in there?” Hongbin called mildly, and they got the sound of shattering glass in response. Wonshik rolled his eyes. 

A moment later Jaehwan came prowling out of the kitchen, a blood bag clutched in his hands. He still didn’t look at them, but it was more desperate, this time around. 

“Jaehwan,” Taekwoon called, gentle, and Jaehwan just growled in response, not pausing, making a beeline for the hallway. “Don’t you want to come with us, when Hakyeon and I go to see Sanghyuk?”

Jaehwan stopped in his tracks, and Hakyeon slid Taekwoon a most unimpressed look. He didn’t fucking _want_ Jaehwan to come along. He had no business doing so.

Jaehwan did not look at them as he said, “Why would I want to be there? I don’t need to suffer through this touching reunion— your little pet will probably cry. The thought makes me want to vomit.”

Taekwoon, quite calmly for all that Jaehwan was baiting him, said, “In the past you have shown quite a bit of concern for Sanghyuk’s safety—”

“I was never concerned about Sanghyuk’s safety,” Jaehwan said quickly, snapping it out. His upper lip curled. “I merely did not want to lose my most convenient source of blood. But there are sources of sustenance elsewhere, so I care not what you and your little pet do.” 

He brought the blood bag to his lips, taking a sip, the picture of affected aloofness, and then prowled right out of the room, disappearing down the hall.

After he’d been gone long enough, Hongbin leaned forward and stage whispered, “He’s entered stage two: denial.”

——

The bathroom air was thick with steam, the scent of rose petals hanging heavily in the air. A single drop of water fell from the bathtub’s faucet, the _plunk_ it made as it hit the water below it loud in the silence. 

Jaehwan blinked at the ripples, watching them come towards his face. He was sunk down in the hot bath water, so the only thing above water were his eyes, the tips of his ears, the top of his head. He had no need to breathe, after all, and he was sitting utterly still. 

He’d been hoping taking a bath would relax him, calm him, but he found he was still furious, unable to stop the thoughts pinging around in his head. The image of Sanghyuk in the same room as Hakyeon, with his heartbeat strong in his throat, the blood whispering under his skin, a constant temptation—

Jaehwan closed his eyes. It didn’t matter, he told himself. It didn’t matter, what happened to Sanghyuk. He was just a human, and there were, quite literally, billions of them. He’d be easy to replace, if lost. 

Jaehwan told himself this several times, in rapid succession, chanting it like a priest would rattle off a hundred _hail mary_ s after a sin, a mantra. 

Yes, Sanghyuk would be easy to replace. It did not matter if he— if he died. And it didn’t matter if he slept with others. None of it mattered, not to Jaehwan, old and proud and _vampire_. He was more than that, above caring about something so insignificant. He needed to get a fucking grip on himself.

He was not going to become Taekwoon. He was not.

There was something else niggling at him, that he hadn’t let himself bother with, but it was time to deal with it. He was, truly, getting hungry. And there were billions of humans up there, a veritable plethora for Jaehwan’s choosing. He did not need to be subjected to Sanghyuk’s childish whims in this matter. Another human would do just fine.

Jaehwan let himself sink further down into the water, let it engulf him utterly. It rushed into his ears, muffling sound in that peculiar way water did. He felt his hair swirl and then settle. 

He’d go hunting, tonight.

——

Sungjae was too tall and too bony for cuddling, really, especially for cuddling on so small a space as Sanghyuk’s couch. But they managed. 

“My couch is gonna smell like come now,” Sanghyuk muttered, and Sungjae chuckled, his breath puffing against Sanghyuk’s chest. 

“Didn’t it already though? You can’t tell me you hadn’t fucked anyone on it before,” Sungjae said. 

“I hadn’t,” Sanghyuk said softly, running his hand down Sungjae’s back lightly, the skin there damp with sweat. He remembered Jaehwan turning his nose up at the mere suggestion they fuck on Sanghyuk’s couch, because it smelled funny, mostly. It probably did, to a vampire’s sensitive nose. 

His loss, Sanghyuk figured, since Sungjae riding him while straddling his lap, their faces close, had been— a very nice experience indeed. 

“Well,” Sungjae said, matter of fact, “it needed to be baptized, then. I’ve done it a favor. Next we should have a go on your kitchen counter.”

“Oh, _gross_ ,” Sanghyuk said, and shoved Sungjae off of himself, rolling him onto the floor. Sungjae squawked, and Sanghyuk ignored him in favor of sitting up and reaching for the bowl of chips on the coffee table. “Get out of my house, I need to sleep.” 

Sungjae snatched the bowl away from him, shoving a handful of chips into his own face. “Fine,” he said, spraying a few crumbs onto the carpet. He stood, gathering up his clothes and pulling them on, shameless and efficient. 

Sanghyuk smiled fondly at him, even though he wasn’t looking, and then set about tugging his own boxers back up, doing up his jeans. He’d invited Sungjae over to watch a movie — which they’d done — and then to play video games, which they had begun to do before it had devolved into play wrestling. And from there, it— well. It went elsewhere.

He liked it. Liked the easy companionship they had. Their relationship hadn’t changed, really, they were still partners, still just friends, it was just that sex had been added to the mix, a pleasant bonus. 

Sanghyuk was amazed how easy they made it. With Jaehwan things were so much more complicated. 

As Sungjae was tugging his socks back on, Sanghyuk’s wards began to tingle, and his stomach plummeted. Blast it, did simply _thinking_ about Jaehwan fucking summon the bastard? Sanghyuk looked to his living room window, as if Jaehwan would be there, but the blinds were closed.

Sungjae also glanced at the closed window. “Vamp passing by,” he said, utterly unfazed.

“Yeah,” Sanghyuk muttered. He picked his shirt up, tugging it on, planning on seeing Sungjae out. He grabbed his dagger too, for good measure. It wouldn’t do much if Jaehwan decided to be a prick, but it made him feel better.

Sungjae gave him a look, when he stepped out of the apartment after him, and was sighing in exasperation by the time they got outside. The moon was bright tonight, and the air was cool, autumn officially upon them. Soon the stores would be selling Halloween decorations. Sanghyuk was sort of looking forward to it.

His wards were still tittering, the sunburst on his back warming uncomfortably. He looked left, right, scanning, but saw no movement, just streetlamps, beaming down yellow light into the blackness of the night. 

“You gonna walk me all the way home?” Sungjae teased, easy smile on his face.

“I kind of want to,” Sanghyuk said, utterly serious, eyeing an alleyway down the block with suspicion. He didn’t fucking trust Jaehwan.

Sanghyuk looked back at Sungjae, who was blushing slightly. “You’re ridiculous,” Sungjae muttered, lifting his shirt to show his dagger, hidden at his side. “I’ll be fine, go back inside.” Sanghyuk felt his mouth twist, and Sungjae darted forward, kissing him softly. “I’ll see you at work tomorrow night,” he said, gentle, and then patted Sanghyuk on the head with slight condescension. 

Sanghyuk watched him walk all the way down the block, hand on the handle of his blade, only going back inside when Sungjae turned the corner. His wards didn’t stop burning, so that was good. It meant Jaehwan wasn’t following Sungjae. Small mercies. 

Once back in his apartment, he deliberately turned all the lights on, so that if Jaehwan decided to try and spy on him, or actually come inside, he’d be slightly blinded. It was childish, but Sanghyuk was miffed. Jaehwan deserved worse.

It took a few more moments, Sanghyuk standing in his kitchen, arms crossed, _waiting_ , but then his house wards rippled around him, the spellwork disturbed. The corners of Sanghyuk’s mouth tightened grimly, and his shoulders tensed, as he braced for the sound of tapping on his window.

It didn’t come. Instead, a firm knock resounded from his front door, and it made him jump, he was so startled. Jaehwan never knocked at the door, that would be too— polite. Sanghyuk stepped cautiously to his door, glancing through the peephole, and then said, “Oh my god.”

He wrenched the door open, mouth slightly agape and eyes wide. Hakyeon was standing on his doorstep. He was wearing one of his softer sweaters, white cashmere, and slightly worn jeans, looking like some strange replica of the man Sanghyuk knew. Because this Hakyeon was no longer human, and it was strange, so strange, like Hakyeon had sheathed himself in a new skin. He looked so familiar, and yet so different. 

Hakyeon’s eyes were bright. “Sorry I didn’t call ahead,” he murmured, gentle, like he thought he needed to ease into this. His voice, like the rest of him, was the same and yet not. “I just wanted to see you.”

Sanghyuk felt joy swell inside him, and he smiled, so widely it hurt. “You did it,” he said, “you— you changed. You’re okay.”

Hakyeon blinked at him, and then he was laughing. The sound gave Sanghyuk goosebumps, and his wards rippled with energy, but it also just— sounded like home.

“Well, yes, but you knew that,” Hakyeon said, still smiling warmly. 

Sanghyuk shook his head. Yes, he’d known, but it was different seeing it. And there was more to it. Hakyeon— he was Hakyeon again. He had that fire under his skin back, and after months of watching Hakyeon become more and more wilted, like a flower denied water, it was refreshing to see him looking so alive.

Even if he was dead now.

“Is it safe for you, already?” Sanghyuk asked, wanting to step forward, to touch, but he wasn’t sure if he should.

“I’m not alone,” Hakyeon said, eyes twinkling, and he looked to the stairwell. Sanghyuk followed his gaze, jolting a little when he saw Taekwoon, lurking in the shadows, like a creepy gargoyle. Yes, of course Hakyeon wouldn’t come alone. Sanghyuk needed to accept the fact that Taekwoon and Hakyeon were now a matched set, forever together. “May we come in?”

This was so weird. “Yeah,” Sanghyuk said, stepping back, and the wards of the house parted as Hakyeon came through the door, Taekwoon following him quickly. It was slightly unnerving, to see Hakyeon moving with that fluid, boneless grace. Sanghyuk shuddered and shut the door behind them, sealing them all in.

Hakyeon was wrinkling his nose. “It smells like sex in here.”

Sanghyuk’s face flamed red. He flicked a glance at Taekwoon, who was, blessedly, stony faced. “Yeah, astute observation, mom,” Sanghyuk muttered, “you gonna tell me exactly how many dirty socks you can smell, too?”

“Oh, hush,” Hakyeon said, rolling his eyes, “the smell is so strong I wouldn’t need to be a vampire to smell it— the boy we saw leaving, that was Sungjae right? You’re sleeping with your partner?”

Sanghyuk ran a hand through his hair, flustered. “Yeah.”

“Are you— dating him? What about Jaehwan?” Hakyeon asked, blinking. His tone was light, casual.

Sanghyuk scowled at the mention of Jaehwan, as if the douchebag had any right being brought up in this conversation. Sanghyuk _didn’t belong to him_. “What about Jaehwan?” Sanghyuk said, a little sharp. “He isn’t my master, we never had any strings. He has no right to weigh in on me sleeping with other people.”

“I do not think he would feel the same way,” Taekwoon said, very soft, like he was trying not to be intrusive. His statement wasn’t an accusation, merely a statement of fact.

“He didn’t,” Sanghyuk said, pissed off at the memory. “He tried to go all _you are my human_ on me and I told him to shove it up his ass. He hasn’t come around since.”

Hakyeon smiled, wide, clearly tickled by this news, and Sanghyuk slid him a look. “So you broke it off? This explains a lot.”

Sanghyuk shook his head, and Hakyeon deflated, a little. “No, I merely told him that until he can hold himself to his own rules, he needs to stay away.” Sanghyuk shrugged. “I figure he’ll come back, eventually. He just needs some time to get over himself.” He eyed Hakyeon. “What exactly does this explain, though?”

“Jaehwan has been rather temperamental, these last few weeks. It seemed almost as if he was moping,” Taekwoon murmured.

That sounded about right. “I’m not surprised,” Sanghyuk said, “I get the impression he’s used to always getting his way.”

“Mm,” Taekwoon hummed, and he and Hakyeon shared a look that Sanghyuk couldn’t decipher, but seemed meaningful.

Hakyeon frowned, turning back to Sanghyuk. “You didn’t answer me, about whether you and your partner are dating.”

Sanghyuk wrinkled his nose, and Hakyeon laughed, softly. “No,” Sanghyuk said, “we’re not. It’s— it’s supposed to be the same sort of relationship I have with Jaehwan. Friends with benefits. The difference is, Sungjae isn’t a giant hypocrite, and we’re actually managing it very nicely.”

“Hongbin and Wonshik started out like that,” Hakyeon said, smiling a little. “Friends with benefits and hunting partners, I mean.”

Sanghyuk snorted. “I know you want me and Jaehwa to break things off more permanently, but hoping I fall for Sungjae isn’t the way that is going to happen.” He liked Sungjae as a friend, cared for him, but he’d never be able to love him, not the way Wonshik and Hongbin loved one another. Their feelings were on another level.

“A vampire can dream,” Hakyeon said, smiling, and it made Sanghyuk smile back. “Oh, kiddo, I missed you.”

“Missed lecturing me?” Sanghyuk said, but he didn’t mean it. He’d missed Hakyeon too, hadn’t realized how much he’d needed him until he was gone. 

“Well, not exactly,” Hakyeon said. He reached out, and, very carefully, touched his fingertips to Sanghyuk’s cheek. He was cold, icy, and Sanghyuk’s wards fizzled at the contact. He made sure to keep them in check, not wanting to hurt Hakyeon. “Just missed you as a friend.”

Sanghyuk stepped forward, letting Hakyeon fold him into a hug. It was different, Hakyeon didn’t breathe, his heart was still, and it was colder than any hug Sanghyuk had ever had before. But it still felt right, still felt like Hakyeon.

It made Sanghyuk feel like everything was going to be alright. The dust was settling. It was going to be fine. Everything was going to be fine. 

“I missed you too,” he whispered.

——

Jaehwan had chosen a different hunting ground than what he usually preferred, opting to lurk on a rooftop across from a club, like some kind of dreadful cliche. But unlike the vamps that hunters trolled for in places like these, Jaehwan was savvy, and knew what to watch out for. And he knew there were no hunters here, not tonight. 

He watched, waited, as a gaggle of girls in short skirts and too-tall heels came out of the club, stumbling down the sidewalk together. Normally, he would pop out of his home and grab whoever was closest, but tonight he was looking for something particular. He let the girls go past, eyes trained on the entrance to the club. 

More people came and went, in varying shapes and sizes, hair colors and fashion senses. After an hour, Jaehwan was near the end of his tether and considering giving the venture up, but then a man stumbled out of the club, just a bit unsteady, and— oh, yes, he’d do nicely. Grey skinny jeans, black leather jacket, strong jawline, and sharp cheekbones. He even looked like he’d be taller than Jaehwan. 

The man walked down the sidewalk, not overly drunk, and clearly correspondingly unconcerned. Because vampires only preyed on people who weren’t vigilant, or some other such nonsense.

Jaehwan followed him, smoothly, down the block and around the corner, hearing his heartbeat, loud and clear and strong. Jaehwan’s fangs slid out in anticipation, ready, so ready.

The man was pulling keys out of his pocket, and oh, that was cute, he had a car. Trying to be safe. He should have stayed inside, if that’s what he wanted.

Jaehwan slithered forward, silent as smoke, and grabbed the man’s arm, stopping him in his tracks and then spinning him around so he faced Jaehwan. The man gave a cry of alarm, and Jaehwan grasped his jaw, hard, forcing him to meet Jaehwan’s eyes. At the skin contact, Jaehwan had come to expect the shock of wards, the fizzle of magic, but of course, there was none. It was somewhat anti-climactic.

Jaehwan caught the man’s eyes, pulling him in and making his next scream cut off. It was depressingly easy.

“Give me permission,” Jaehwan whispered, looking up into eyes artfully lined with black eyeliner. This man had echoes of Sanghyuk in his face, was certainly just as pretty, but his nose was taller, and he was missing the charming little scar Sanghyuk had above his left eyebrow. Still, Jaehwan had been right: it had been easy to find another human similar to Sanghyuk in frame.

“Yes,” the man said, unblinking, unknowing, and his voice was flat from the glamour, utterly unlike the sweet breathy way Sanghyuk always said, _yes, Jaehwan, please_ —

Jaehwan backed him into the wall of a nearby building, away from the light cast from the streetlamps. He held the glamour for a few extra beats, wanting it to stick, before he flicked the man’s leather — faux leather, Jaehwan realized — jacket off one of his shoulders, baring the side of his neck. 

Jaehwan leaned down, nosing along the man’s throat. The smell of smoke clung to him, and Jaehwan had thought it was from the club, but he realized now the man himself was a smoker. He was— was so lacking, had the human scent but it was all wrong. Jaehwan cut that thought off. 

He didn’t need to be gentle here, didn’t need to be careful, and he let himself bite down, hard, trying to relish in it, as he always had done before. Blood welled up to meet him, spilling into his mouth, hot and coppery and— wrong. 

Jaehwan pulled back, swallowing his mouthful with a grimace. Jaehwan could taste the smoke in his blood, but that wasn’t uncommon. No, it just— it didn’t taste right. It didn’t taste like _Sanghyuk_.

At that thought Jaehwan very nearly screamed. But he kept himself in check, as he didn’t want this stupid human, this stupid _wrong_ human, to resurface from the glamour and scream too. That would be most counterproductive.

It was alright, he told himself. He’d been feeding off Sanghyuk, and only Sanghyuk, for over six months, it made sense that anyone else would taste foreign to him, taste off. 

Jaehwan bared his teeth, snarling a little, then leaned down and bit again. There was no answering gasp, no whimper of Jaehwan’s name, but there was blood, flowing readily from the wounds.

It was fine, it really was. 

And when Jaehwan couldn’t finish, he told himself it was because this human was just too tall to be drained dry, too large for slim little Jaehwan to manage. 

He pulled off and the human slumped to the ground, heartbeat sluggish. He’d die, Jaehwan had taken enough for that, at least. But it would take time, for the blood loss to kill him.

After a moment of— floundering, he was fucking floundering— he reached out, and snapped the man’s neck.

The man’s body slumped to the ground, glazed eyes unseeing, and all Jaehwan could see was Sanghyuk, his pretty little human, with his throat opened. The blood in his mouth tasted like poison, and it stuck in his throat noxiously. 

He had to fight the panic down. It didn’t mean anything. He’d grown quite accustomed to the taste of Sanghyuk, the feel of him. And like he’d realized before, it had just— just been a while, since he’d fed on anyone else, and going from a willing and eager partner back to the humdrum of having to glamour— it would suck for anyone, no pun intended.

Choosing a human that looked like Sanghyuk had been a mistake. He’d snag a girl, next time. Maybe the change would be refreshing. They tended to smell nicer, at any rate. 

“You’re fine, Jaehwan,” he whispered to himself. “You’re fine, you’re fine, you don’t— don’t need him. You got on fine without him for three hundred years, you can get on without him now too. You’re fine.”

Jaehwan left, flitting onto the rooftops, running as if he could escape something that, he was beginning to fear, had taken root inside of him, and wasn’t going to let go.


End file.
